Electric branding apparatus



July 5, 1955 c STORY 2,712,587

ELECTRIC BRANDING APPARATUS Filed Dec. 2, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. I

INVENTOR F|(; 4 MALCOLM c. STORY ATTORNEY July 5, 1955 M. c. STORY ELECTRIC BRANDING APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 2, 1952 FIG.5

FIG. 8

FIG. 9

INVENTOR MALCOLM C. STORY,

BY gm ATTORNEY ELETRC BRANDING APPARATUS Malcolm C. Story, Bozeman, Mont. Application December 2, 1952, Serial No. 323,548 1 Claim. (Cl. 21930) This invention relates to improvements in branding apparatus and more particularly to electrically heated branding irons and method of using the same.

An object of this invention is to provide a branding device which is relatively light in weight, inexpensive to manufacture, electrically heated and easy to operate.

Another object of the invention is to provide a branding iron of simple construction which can be quickly electrically heated and is used in connection with a stencil or guide having the outline of the brand to be produced.

Heretofore in branding livestock, an electrically heated iron having the shape of the brand to be produced has been used without the use of a stencil or guide for the branding iron.

A still further object of the invention is the employment of a tabulating attachment or tally pad attached to the handle of the device so that the user of the apparatus may keep an accurate record of the number of brands applied and of different ages and sexes of the animals worked.

With these objects in view the invention consists of the following combination and arrangement of parts which will heretoafter be described and more particularly pointed out in the claim.

A preferred embodiment of this invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. l is a plan view of a proposed stencil used in carrying out this new method of branding live stock.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the stencil shown in Fig 1.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of a simple form of guide which may be used in place of the stencil.

4 is a side elevation of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is an end elevation of the heart shaped heat unit which is the preferred form of heat unit used.

Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the branding iron showing the electrical conducting wires attached to the handle and a tally pad mounted thereon.

Fig. 7 is an elevation of a circular form of heat unit.

Fig. 8 is an elevation of a square form of heat unit.

Fig. 9 is an elevation of a triangular form of heat unit.

Fig. 10 is an elevation of a semi-circular form of heat unit.

With more detailed reference to the drawing the numeral l designates a handle which may be of suitable size and shape to he gripped by the hand of the operator. Mounted on a hat surface on the upper side or" the handle l is a tally pad 2 upon which may be indicated an accurate tally of the number of brands applied or any other information pertaining to the livestock being worked.

On the further end of the handle is fixed a metal plate or washer 3 which secures the shanks 4 of the heat element 5. The shanks 4 which are better conductors of electricity are not heated when the current from a 110 volt circuit passes therethrough to the heat element 5, which becomes red hot when the implement is in use. A bolt in the end of the handle 1, passes through a hole 6 in the plate 3 whereby the handle is rigidly attached to the plate. Attached to the lower ends of the shanks 4 are conducting wires 7 which pass along the lower side of the handle to the source of the electric current. The wires may be held in place or attached to the lower side of the handle by means of suitable clips 8 or equivalent fastening devices. it is obvious, of course, that the wires could pass along the lower side of the handle and thence diagonally through a hole passing lengthwise of and out of the end. This is. a common form of construction in implements of this type and may be preferable since it would eliminate one or more clips and the wire would be shielded thus affording a smooth grip for the operator.

A switch S, may be placed in the circuit beneath the handle where it can be easily operated by the user.

Ordinarily such a switch however is not necessary since in branding a large number of cattle one wants the iron hot all the time so it is left plugged in to the permanent line socket so that it is always ready and it is unnecessary to reheat the iron after each branding operation.

In the successful operation of the device it is necessary to employ in connection therewith a suitable stencil or guide and a separate stencil or guide must be used for each particular brand produced. The Story brand, for example, is an inverted a! over an inverted "t" as clearly shown in l by the inverted t -shaped slot 9, and the inverted T shaped slot it), in the flat or body portion 11, of the templet. A cylindrical handle 12, is attached to the body portion 11 or" the tenplet by means. of two iron rod connecting arms 12, as clearly shown in Fig. l and Fig. 2. In this apparatus, the handle 1 may be considered as the first handle, and the handle 12 attached to the template or guide as the second handle.

For some brands, instead of a templet, a simpler form of guide such as shown in Fig. 3 may be used. This figure shows an inverted V guide 9', and an inverted T guide 10. A short stop 15 is mounted on the upright portion id of the guide to limit the upward movement of the heat element A laterally projecting handle 12 is attached to the body portion of this guide by means of the arms, 13' to hold the same in correct position when used in connection with the branding iron.

The method of branding livestock with an electric branding iron used with a stencil or guide is the essence of the invention and it is believed that applicant is the first to successfully employ this method.

Applicant after making an exhaustive test in branding several hundred cattle has demonstrated the superiority of this method in which the branding iron is not in the shape of the brand that is to be made. The actual design or shape of the brand, a replica of which is desired on the animals hide is not formed of the heated metal as has always been custcrnary, but this design is formed by spaces or open work, thru which the iron is applied to the hide or the design is formed guiding the heated iron by means of guide-means such as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. Heretofore, for all practical purposes, all hot irons used for applying heat in livestock branding have been shaped in the same design as that of the brand to be produced.

By using the above described red hot electric unit on volt commercial residence current available on all up to date cattle ranches, a better brand may be obtained on animals, easier, with far less work, since this method is characterized by its simplicity, ease of operation, absence of blotching the evenness of brand due to equal intensity of heat and no fire hazard from the usual open wood fire that has. generally been employed in heating branding irons.

Applicants invention is not limited to the specific branding iron disclosed but is in the ap aratus disclosed in which the branding iron used in connection with a stencil or guide. The invention therefore also includes the method of branding by use of such apparatus.

The operation of branding livestock by this method is simple. The animal to be branded is first held in a fixed position by the means generally employed by ranchrnen for this purpose. The operator holds the handle of the guide or stencil in one hand and places it firmly on the animal at the desired position. With the other hand he holds the branding iron and moves the heat element 5 on the animals hide, along the path indicated by the stencil or guide to form the desired brand.

Obviously the invention is. not limited to the specific details of construction disclosed herein but is capable of other modification and change Without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claim. Having now particularly described my invention and the manner of its use, I claim:

Branding apparatus comprising the combination of an electrically heated branding element and a stencil or guide, said element having a looped portion and a shank portion, a first handle, mounting means connecting said shank portion to said first handle, electrical leads attached to said element and secured to the surface of said handle, said guide being provided with a second handle, said second handle being angularly connected to said guide, the surface of the looped portion of the branding element traversing an outline provided in said guide whereby a predetermined brand is formed while the guide is held against the surface to be branded.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,363,897 Morgans Dec. 28, 1920 1,693,561 Klein Nov. 27, 1928 2,101,913 Meyer Dec. 14, 1937 2,213,898 Brook Sept. 3, 1940 2,455,410 Farrar Dec. 7, 1948 

